isiNdebele
Southern Ndebele
Atlantic-Congo (Bantu, Nguni)
Southern Ndebele (isiNdebele) is one of South Africa's eleven official languages, distinct from Northern Ndebele of Zimbabwe (a Zulu-derived diaspora variety). It is closely related to Zulu within the Nguni Bantu group but has acquired distinctive vocabulary through extensive contact with Northern Sotho (Pedi) and Tswana neighbours, and is famous outside its home region for the brilliantly painted Ndebele house murals of Mpumalanga, an iconic visual heritage.
Where it is spoken
31 core words in Southern Ndebele
Water
amanzi
/amanzi/
Fire
umlilo
/umlilo/
Sun
ilanga
/ilaŋɡa/
Moon
inyanga
/iɲaŋɡa/
Star
inkwenkwezi
/iŋkʷeŋkʷezi/
Mother
umma
/umma/
Father
ubaba
/uɓaɓa/
I
mina
/mina/
You
wena
/wena/
Name
ibizo
/ibizo/
Eye
ihlo
/iɬo/
Hand
isandla
/isandɮa/
Heart
ihliziyo
/iɬizijo/
Love
ithando
/itʰando/
Tree
umuthi
/umutʰi/
House
indlu
/indɮu/
Dog
inja
/indʒa/
Cat
ikati
/ikati/
Eat
ukudla
/ukuɮa/
Drink
ukusela
/ukusela/
One
nye
/ɲe/
Two
kubili
/kubili/
Hello
lotjhani
/lotʃʰani/
Thank you
ngiyathokoza
/ŋijatʰokoza/
Good
kuhle
/kuɬe/
Words compared
Compared with related Atlantic-Congo (Bantu, Nguni) languages
| Meaning | Southern Ndebele | Northern Ndebele | Zulu | Xhosa | Swazi | Tsonga | Lozi |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water | amanzi /amanzi/ | amanzi /amanzi/ | amanzi /amanzi/ | amanzi /amaːnzi/ | emanti /emanti/ | mati /mati/ | mezi /mezi/ |
| Fire | umlilo /umlilo/ | umlilo /umlilo/ | umlilo /umlilo/ | umlilo /umlilo/ | umlilo /umlilo/ | ndzilo /ndzilo/ | mulilo /mulilo/ |
| Sun | ilanga /ilaŋɡa/ | ilanga /ilaŋɡa/ | ilanga /ilaŋɡa/ | ilanga /ilaːŋɡa/ | lilanga /lilaŋɡa/ | dyambu /dʒambu/ | lizazi /lizazi/ |
| Moon | inyanga /iɲaŋɡa/ | inyanga /iɲaŋɡa/ | inyanga /iɲaŋɡa/ | inyanga /iɲaːŋɡa/ | inyanga /iɲaŋɡa/ | n'weti /ŋweti/ | kweli /kweli/ |
| Star | inkwenkwezi /iŋkʷeŋkʷezi/ | inkanyezi /iŋkaɲezi/ | inkanyezi /iŋkaˈɲeːzi/ | inkwenkwezi /iŋkʷeŋkʷezi/ | inkhanyeti /iŋkʰaɲeti/ | nyeleti /ɲeleti/ | naleli /naleli/ |
| Mother | umma /umma/ | umama /umama/ | umama /umama/ | umama /umaːma/ | make /make/ | manana /manana/ | ma /ma/ |
| Father | ubaba /uɓaɓa/ | ubaba /uɓaɓa/ | ubaba /uɓaɓa/ | utata /utaːta/ | babe /ɓaɓe/ | tatana /tatana/ | ndate /ndate/ |
| I | mina /mina/ | mina /mina/ | mina /ˈmiːna/ | mna /mna/ | mine /míne/ | mina /mina/ | na /na/ |
| You | wena /wena/ | wena /wena/ | wena /ˈweːna/ | wena /wena/ | wena /wéna/ | wena /wena/ | wena /wena/ |
| Name | ibizo /ibizo/ | ibizo /ibizo/ | igama /iˈɡaːma/ | igama /iɡaːma/ | libito /libiːto/ | vito /vito/ | libizo /libizo/ |
| Eye | ihlo /iɬo/ | ilihlo /iliɬo/ | iso /iso/ | iliso /iliso/ | liso /liso/ | tihlo /tiɬo/ | liito /liːto/ |
| Hand | isandla /isandɮa/ | isandla /isandɮa/ | isandla /isandɮa/ | isandla /isandɮa/ | sandla /sandɮa/ | voko /voko/ | lizoho /lizoho/ |
| Heart | ihliziyo /iɬizijo/ | inhliziyo /inɬizijo/ | inhliziyo /inɬizijo/ | intliziyo /intɬizijo/ | inhlitiyo /inɬitijo/ | mbilu /mbilu/ | pilu /pilu/ |
| Love | ithando /itʰando/ | uthando /utʰando/ | uthando /utʰando/ | uthando /utʰando/ | lutsandvo /lutsandwo/ | rirhandzu /riɾandzu/ | lilato /lilato/ |
| Tree | umuthi /umutʰi/ | isihlahla /isiɬaɬa/ | isihlahla /isiɬaɬa/ | umthi /umtʰi/ | sihlahla /siɬaɬa/ | nsinya /nsiɲa/ | kota /kota/ |
| House | indlu /indɮu/ | indlu /indɮu/ | indlu /indɮu/ | indlu /indɮu/ | indlu /indɮu/ | yindlu /jindɮu/ | ndu /ndu/ |
| Dog | inja /indʒa/ | inja /indʒa/ | inja /indʒa/ | inja /indʒa/ | inja /indʒa/ | mbyana /mbjana/ | nja /ndʒa/ |
| Cat | ikati /ikati/ | ikati /ikati/ | ikati /ikati/ | ikati /ikati/ | likati /likati/ | mangoyi /maŋɡoji/ | kaze /kaze/ |
| Eat | ukudla /ukuɮa/ | ukudla /ukuɮa/ | ukudla /ukuɮa/ | ukutya /ukutʲa/ | kudla /kuɮa/ | ku dya /ku dʒa/ | kuca /kutsa/ |
| Drink | ukusela /ukusela/ | ukunatha /ukunatʰa/ | ukuphuza /ukupʰuza/ | ukusela /ukusɛla/ | kunatsa /kunatsa/ | ku nwa /ku nwa/ | kunwa /kunwa/ |
| One | nye /ɲe/ | nye /ɲe/ | kunye /kuɲe/ | inye /iɲɛ/ | kunye /kuɲe/ | rin'we /riŋwe/ | nyinwi /ɲiŋʷi/ |
| Two | kubili /kubili/ | kubili /kubili/ | kubili /kuˈɓili/ | mbini /mbiːni/ | kubili /kubiːli/ | mbirhi /mbiri/ | peli /peli/ |
| Hello | lotjhani /lotʃʰani/ | salibonani /saliɓonani/ | sawubona /sawuɓona/ | molo /molo/ | sawubona /sawuɓona/ | avuxeni /avuʃeni/ | eni sha /ɛni ʃa/ |
| Thank you | ngiyathokoza /ŋijatʰokoza/ | ngiyabonga /ŋijaɓoŋɡa/ | ngiyabonga /ŋɡijaɓoŋɡa/ | enkosi /ɛnkosi/ | ngiyabonga /ŋijaɓoŋɡa/ | inkomu /iŋkomu/ | nitumezi /nitumezi/ |
| Good | kuhle /kuɬe/ | kuhle /kuɬe/ | kuhle /kuɬe/ | lungile /luŋɡilɛ/ | kuhle /kuɬe/ | kahle /kaɬe/ | nde /nde/ |
Part of LangMap — a linguistic visualization project. This is a static, crawlable summary; the interactive maps offer pronunciation audio, filters, and a globe view.